SpongeBob's Latest: Search for SquarePants Review – A Swashbuckling Dose of Giggle-Provoking Silliness

Could those early viewers who laughed through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the franchise enduring for a quarter-century, following experiencing the most lysergic of narrative twists? Such longevity is in part due to its broad charm, amusing the sense of humor of grown-ups – perhaps even those now grown students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it may not feature anything quite as unexpected as a certain memorable David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this latest movie thinks nothing of having a veteran voice actor speak as a pirate while dispensing payments to music icons like Barbra Streisand. This proves anything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

A Familiar Goofy Groove

Starting with a holiday short featuring Paramount's other weathered babysitters, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film quickly finds a comfortably goofy groove. Its script acts as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of growing up. This iteration of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a detail that excites him as it finally qualifies him to experience his fantasy coaster. (An early, psychedelic gag: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) However, like the finest modern American cartoons, the real thrill ride is the corkscrew plotting.

The Quest for Pirate Proof

SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary swashbuckler certificate that will declare him a “big guy” brings him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ghost ship adds a larger scale, the movie's aesthetic remains a delightful mix of digimation and hand-crafted elements, forever showcasing pleasing, properly animated effects.

Whether its spitballing silliness will resonate when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.

Notable scenes feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an AC unit and emerging somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering joke-shop false teeth; and a punishment sure to delight the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Search for SquarePants is a reliable entry to the franchise – and perhaps the most humorous Pirates of the Caribbean movie recently, encompassing a hearty Davy Jones gag and a cheekily suggestive catchphrase for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” One thing is certain: those original students will likely be chuckling all over again.

Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on 19 December in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.